Springfield touts plans to bring West Coast to western Mass.

By Adam Gorlick, Associated Press Writer  |  January 31, 2007

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. --A bit of the West Coast is coming to western Massachusetts with promises to lift this troubled city from its financial woes.

Springfield officials and private developers on Wednesday laid out details of a $14 million plan to build an L.A. Fitness Center, a California-based sports medicine business, and a restaurant that will be named the Hollywood Barn, on the Connecticut River waterfront.

The complex will be located next to the Basketball Hall of Fame, creating another prominent sign right next to Interstate 91 that city leaders hope will show the state's third-largest city is finally rebounding.

"Springfield has been overlooked for too many years," developer Michael Spagnoli said at a news conference held at the Hall of Fame. "It's time to give this city its due."

Spagnoli, a chiropractor who runs sports medicine centers in California, Massachusetts and Connecticut, grew up in Springfield and moved to Hidden Hills, Calif., about 15 years ago. His development partner, Peter Pappas of East Longmeadow, also grew up in Springfield.

The city has spent the past several years clawing its way from a morass of public corruption and near bankruptcy. But a state-appointed board that has overseen Springfield's finances since 2004 -- when the city had a $41 million deficit and was close to bankruptcy -- has balanced the city's books and raised its credit rating from junk bond status.

An ongoing federal public corruption probe has ferreted out mismanagement from several city agencies and helped restore investor confidence.

"We had to lick corruption, and now a bunch of those guys are on their way to jail," Mayor Charles Ryan said. "We had to balance our budget, and we did that. Now, we're starting to look like a legitimate city again and people want to do business with us."

Construction of the complex, which is being called River's Landing, will begin in about a month, Spagnoli said. The businesses should be ready to open early next year and are expected to create about 100 permanent jobs.

The LA Fitness center will be a 60,000-square-foot workout space giving members westerly views of the Connecticut River. River's Landing will be the first Massachusetts location for the company, which is based in Irvine, Calif., and operates 190 clubs across the country.

Spagnoli's Trillium Sports Medicine group will offer several medical services, including acupuncture, physical therapy and orthopedic and chiropractic care.

The Hollywood Barn will be a fine-dining restaurant that combines the Springfield roots of the project developers. Pappas' family owned a restaurant and nightclub in nearby Chicopee called the Red Barn; Spagnoli's family ran the Hollywood Cafe in Springfield's South End neighborhood.

"People are ready for something different in this area, and this will bring it in," said David Panagore, the city's economic development chief. "And western Massachusetts has a laid-back feel, so this California theme should fit in well."

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